On March 28, Lee Eung-bok, the director of last year’s mega-hit series Mr. Sunshine, announced his new project. Lee worked with star writer Kim Eun-sook on his last three dramas—Mr. Sunshine, Goblin, and Descendants of the Sun. This time, however, he has chosen to challenge himself by collaborating with a different writer and producing a drama unlike anything he has done before.

His new series, tentatively titled Sweet Home, is based on an ongoing thriller webtoon of the same name created by Youngchan Hwang and Carnby Kim and released in January 2018. It tells the story of a reclusive high school student who has lost his family and touches upon the themes of loneliness, hope, and saving people from becoming “monsters.” One of the major settings in the show is the student’s cramped apartment. To play upon the concept of dealing with inner and outer monsters, many special effects will be used for the series.

The synopsis from Line Webtoon’s website reads: “After an unexpected family tragedy, a reclusive high school student is forced to leave his home—only to face something much scarier: a reality where monsters are trying to wipe out humanity. Now he must fight alongside a handful of reluctant heroes to try and save the world before it’s too late.”

PD Lee first collaborated with Kim Eun-sook for the Song Joong-ki and Song Hye-kyo starrer Descendants of the Sun (2016). He followed it up with Gong Yoo’s Goblin that same year and went on to work with the writer for the third consecutive time for Mr. Sunshine. All these dramas hit the headlines because of their record-breaking viewership ratings and enjoyed immense popularity locally and abroad.

In his early years as a director, Lee helmed the teen drams Dream High, Dream High 2, and School 2013.

Sweet Home is set to begin filming in July. It is aiming to become a fully pre-produced series that will premiere on tvN in December.

Indoor Enthusiast (Esha) is a staff writer at Kdramapal. She is responsible for bringing all the latest happenings in Kdramaland, as well as features and recaps of currently airing dramas, to the readers of the site. As a gender studies student, she loves analyzing K-dramas through the lens of gender politics and social justice. You're most likely to find her droning on and on about how Ji Hae-soo from It's Okay That's Love and Sung Bora from Reply 1988 are the best heroines to ever grace our screens. Her favorite dramas tend to be thrillers like Secret Forest and Signal, as well as heartwarming shows like Misaeng. When not in the mood for either of those, you can find her binging on shows about female friendships a la Age of Youth or rom-coms that come with sprinklings of feminism, like Because This Life Is My First. She lives in India, spends all her free time reading books, and would love nothing more than to meet Gong Hyo-jin and sign away her life's earnings to the actress.
Indoor Enthusiast can be reached at [email protected]